17 research outputs found

    The state and the socio-economic development of Jordan 1973-1985

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    This study questions the basic assumption on which state-centred development has been based, namely, that it acts in the general interests of society and can bring about economic development, and attempts to provide an explanation of the ineffectiveness of the state's project in restructuring the economy by analysing the development of the political economy of Jordan in the wake of the 1973-4 oil boom. This explanation rests on arguing that the state's ability to intervene in the economy is constrained by the particular power configuration that gives it its legitimacy and the necessity to maintain the prominence, influence and authority of the key social forces. In other words, the restructuring of the economy implies a change in the internal power structures of the state as well as its external linkages that have been the basis of its legitimacy and the source of its economic power. The problem, then, is not merely a matter of state inefficiency and misuse of funds but a more deep- rooted structural problem that touches on the essential features of the organisation of state power and its legitimacy and in that respect the state is not a neutral force above society but a partisan force for maintaining the existing power structures. Thus the concentration of capital in the hands of the state during the oil boom period and the expanded role of the state in the economy produced prosperity for the dominant social forces while marginalising a large part of the population and resulted in a deep rooted crisis in the state sector and the economy in general and called into question the feasibility of state-led development and required critical analysis of the role of the state in development

    Factors affecting cecal intubation tinae in colonoscopy: Impact of obesity

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    Objective This study aims to determine the factors that prolong cecal intubation time (CIT) and determine the effect of obesity on CIT measured using multiple indexes. Methods Patients who underwent elective colonoscopy between July 10, 2020, and January 20, 2021, were evaluated in this prospective observational study. Age, gender, constipation, bowel preparation, presence of diverticulosis, previous surgery history, auxiliary maneuver and additional analgesic requirement, cecum intubation length (CL) and obesity indices [body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-toheight ratio (WHIR)] were analyzed. Factors affecting CIT were assessed by both univariate and multivariate logistic regression (LR) analyses. Results A total of 512 patients were analyzed. Mean CIT was 5.6 +/- 1.6 min, and median CIT was 5.17 min. The CIT median was 5.17 min in 248 (48.5%). In the univariate LR results, young age, constipation, poor bowel preparation, increased CL, additional analgesic requirement, low WHtR, and low BMI (0.5 and BMI >30 kg/m2 were found to be independent factors that decrease CIT [OR: 0.01 (0.01 0.03) p 0.5) and BMI (>30 kg/m2) were the best predictors of decreased CIT

    Learning curve of laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer at a new regional state hospital: A single-surgeon experience of 106 consecutive cases without supervision

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    Background: Laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer is mostly performed in university hospitals or experienced centers. This study aimed at determining the learning curve of laparoscopic surgery for col-orectal cancer at a new regional state hospital. Patients and Methods: Clinico-pathological data of 106 consecutive patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer at a new regional state hospital between August 2018 and September 2021 were prospectively recorded and analyzed. All surgeries were performed by a single inexperienced surgeon without supervision. The primary outcome of the study was the operative time, which was used for a Cumulative Sum (CUSUM) analysis of the learning curve. The secondary outcomes included a comparison of preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative outcomes during the learning curve period. Results: According to the CUSUM analysis, the learning curve consisted of three unique phases: phase 1 [the initial learning period (cases 1-53)], phase 2 [the consolidation period (cases 54-68)], and phase 3 [the experienced period (cases 69-106)]. Of the intraoperative outcomes, operative time and estimated blood loss were significantly reduced from phase 1 to phase 3 (p<0.001). Of the postoperative outcomes, time to pass stool (p<0.05), time to oral feeding (p=0.001), drain removal time (p<0.001), and length of hospital stay (p=0.042) were shorter in phase 3 compared to phases 1 and 2. Of the histopathological results, the specimen length and the number of harvested lymph nodes increased with experience (p=0.001). Conclusions: The present results suggest that a surgeon at a new regional state hospital must experience 53-68 cases to achieve competence in laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery

    Гигантоклеточный артериит. Часть I. Терминология, классификация, клинические проявления, диагностика

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    Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is a vasculitis affecting mainly large and medium-sized arteries, which the classification of systemic vasculitides refers to as those mainly involving the large vessels. GCA is typified by the involvement of extracranial aortic branches and intracranial vessels, the aorta and its large vessels are being affected most frequently. The paper considers the terminology, classification, prevalence, major pathogenic mechanisms, and morphology of GCA. A broad spectrum of its clinical subtypes is due to target vessel stenosis caused by intimal hyperplasia. In 40% of cases, GCA is shown to be accompanied by polymyalgia rheumatica that may either precede or manifest simultaneously with GCA, or follow this disease. The menacing complications of GCA may be visual loss or ischemic strokes at various sites depending on the location of the occluded vessel. Along with the gold standard verification of the diagnosis of GCA, namely temporal artery biopsy, the author indicates other (noninvasive) methods for detection of vascular lesions: color Doppler ultrasonography of the temporal arteries, fluorescein angiography of the retina, mag-netic resonance angiography, magnetic resonance imaging, and computed tomography to rule out aortic aneurysm. Dynamic 18F positron emission tomography is demonstrated to play a role in the evaluation of therapeutic effectiveness

    Factors Affecting Liver Regeneration in Living Donors After Hepatectomy

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    Background: The safety of living liver donors is the paramount priority of liver transplantation surgeons. The liver has an effective regeneration capacity. The regeneration rate of the liver remnant in living liver donors provides much information useful in liver surgery. The outcome of the remnant liver after hepatectomy can be affected by many different perioperative factors

    A Search for Extragalactic Fast Blue Optical Transients in ZTF and the Rate of AT2018cow-like Transients

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    Ho, Anna Y. Q. et al.--Full list of authors: Ho, Anna Y. Q.; Perley, Daniel A.; Gal-Yam, Avishay; Lunnan, Ragnhild; Sollerman, Jesper; Schulze, Steve; Das, Kaustav K.; Dobie, Dougal; Yao, Yuhan; Fremling, Christoffer; Adams, Scott; Anand, Shreya; Andreoni, Igor; Bellm, Eric C.; Bruch, Rachel J.; Burdge, Kevin B.; Castro-Tirado, Alberto J.; Dahiwale, Aishwarya; De, Kishalay; Dekany, Richard; Drake, Andrew J.; Duev, Dmitry A.; Graham, Matthew J.; Helou, George; Kaplan, David L.; Karambelkar, Viraj; Kasliwal, Mansi M.; Kool, Erik C.; Kulkarni, S. R.; Mahabal, Ashish A.; Medford, Michael S.; Miller, A. A.; Nordin, Jakob; Ofek, Eran; Petitpas, Glen; Riddle, Reed; Sharma, Yashvi; Smith, Roger; Stewart, Adam J.; Taggart, Kirsty; Tartaglia, Leonardo; Tzanidakis, Anastasios; Winters, Jan MartinWe present a search for extragalactic fast blue optical transients (FBOTs) during Phase I of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF). We identify 38 candidates with durations above half-maximum light 1 day < t1/2 < 12 days, of which 28 have blue (g − r ≲ −0.2 mag) colors at peak light. Of the 38 transients (28 FBOTs), 19 (13) can be spectroscopically classified as core-collapse supernovae (SNe): 11 (8) H- or He-rich (Type II/IIb/Ib) SNe, 6 (4) interacting (Type IIn/Ibn) SNe, and 2 (1) H&He-poor (Type Ic/Ic-BL) SNe. Two FBOTs (published previously) had predominantly featureless spectra and luminous radio emission: AT2018lug (The Koala) and AT2020xnd (The Camel). Seven (five) did not have a definitive classification: AT 2020bdh showed tentative broad Hα in emission, and AT 2020bot showed unidentified broad features and was 10 kpc offset from the center of an early-type galaxy. Ten (eight) have no spectroscopic observations or redshift measurements. We present multiwavelength (radio, millimeter, and/or X-ray) observations for five FBOTs (three Type Ibn, one Type IIn/Ibn, one Type IIb). Additionally, we search radio-survey (VLA and ASKAP) data to set limits on the presence of radio emission for 24 of the transients. All X-ray and radio observations resulted in nondetections; we rule out AT2018cow-like X-ray and radio behavior for five FBOTs and more luminous emission (such as that seen in the Camel) for four additional FBOTs. We conclude that exotic transients similar to AT2018cow, the Koala, and the Camel represent a rare subset of FBOTs and use ZTF's SN classification experiments to measure the rate to be at most 0.1% of the local core-collapse SN rate. © 2023. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.A.G.Y.'s research is supported by the EU via ERC grant No. 725161, the ISF GW excellence center, an IMOS space infrastructure grant, and BSF/Transformative and GIF grants, as well as The Benoziyo Endowment Fund for the Advancement of Science, the Deloro Institute for Advanced Research in Space and Optics, The Veronika A. Rabl Physics Discretionary Fund, Minerva, Yeda-Sela, and the Schwartz/Reisman Collaborative Science Program; A.G.Y. is the recipient of the Helen and Martin Kimmel Award for Innovative Investigation. R.L. acknowledges support from a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship within the Horizon 2020 European Union (EU) Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (H2020-MSCA-IF-2017-794467). D.K. is supported by NSF grant AST-1816492. E.C.K. acknowledges support from the G.R.E.A.T research environment funded by Vetenskapsrådet, the Swedish Research Council, under project No. 2016–06012, and support from The Wenner-Gren Foundations. A.A.M. is funded by the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope Corporation (LSSTC), the Brinson Foundation, and the Moore Foundation in support of the LSSTC Data Science Fellowship Program; he also receives support as a CIERA Fellow by the CIERA Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics, Northwestern University). E.O.O. acknowledges support from the Israeli Science Foundation, The Israeli Ministry of Science, The Bi-National Science foundation, and Minerva. A.J.C.T. acknowledges Y.-D. Hu and A. F. Azamat for their assistance regarding the GTC observation. L.T. acknowledges support from MIUR (PRIN 2017 grant 20179ZF5KS).Peer reviewe

    Author Correction: Discovery and confirmation of the shortest gamma-ray burst from a collapsar

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    In the version of this Letter initially published, the Acknowledgements section omitted to include the following: “Based on observations obtained at the international Gemini Observatory, a program of NSF’s NOIRLab, which is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation on behalf of the Gemini Observatory partnership: the National Science Foundation (United States), National Research Council (Canada), Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo (Chile), Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (Argentina), Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia, Inovações e Comunicações (Brazil), and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (Republic of Korea). The observations were obtained as part of Gemini Director’s Discretionary Program GN-2020B-DD-104. The Gemini data was processed using DRAGONS (Data Reduction for Astronomy from Gemini Observatory North and South). This work was enabled by observations made from the Gemini North telescope, located within the Maunakea Science Reserve and adjacent to the summit of Maunakea. We are grateful for the privilege of observing the Universe from a place that is unique in both its astronomical quality and its cultural significance.” This has now been added to the Acknowledgements following the text “…award No. 80GSFC17M0002.”The original Letter has been corrected in the online version of the paper

    The ChoCO-W prospective observational global study: Does COVID-19 increase gangrenous cholecystitis?

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    Background: The incidence of the highly morbid and potentially lethal gangrenous cholecystitis was reportedly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the ChoCO-W study was to compare the clinical findings and outcomes of acute cholecystitis in patients who had COVID-19 disease with those who did not. Methods: Data were prospectively collected over 6&nbsp;months (October 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021) with 1-month follow-up. In October 2020, Delta variant of SARS CoV-2 was isolated for the first time. Demographic and clinical data were analyzed and reported according to the STROBE guidelines. Baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients who had COVID-19 were compared with those who did not. Results: A total of 2893 patients, from 42 countries, 218 centers, involved, with a median age of 61.3 (SD: 17.39) years were prospectively enrolled in this study; 1481 (51%) patients were males. One hundred and eighty (6.9%) patients were COVID-19 positive, while 2412 (93.1%) were negative. Concomitant preexisting diseases including cardiovascular diseases (p &lt; 0.0001), diabetes (p &lt; 0.0001), and severe chronic obstructive airway disease (p = 0.005) were significantly more frequent in the COVID-19 group. Markers of sepsis severity including ARDS (p &lt; 0.0001), PIPAS score (p &lt; 0.0001), WSES sepsis score (p &lt; 0.0001), qSOFA (p &lt; 0.0001), and Tokyo classification of severity of acute cholecystitis (p &lt; 0.0001) were significantly higher in the COVID-19 group. The COVID-19 group had significantly higher postoperative complications (32.2% compared with 11.7%, p &lt; 0.0001), longer mean hospital stay (13.21 compared with 6.51&nbsp;days, p &lt; 0.0001), and mortality rate (13.4% compared with 1.7%, p &lt; 0.0001). The incidence of gangrenous cholecystitis was doubled in the COVID-19 group (40.7% compared with 22.3%). The mean wall thickness of the gallbladder was significantly higher in the COVID-19 group [6.32 (SD: 2.44) mm compared with 5.4 (SD: 3.45) mm; p &lt; 0.0001]. Conclusions: The incidence of gangrenous cholecystitis is higher in COVID patients compared with non-COVID patients admitted to the emergency department with acute cholecystitis. Gangrenous cholecystitis in COVID patients is associated with high-grade Clavien-Dindo postoperative complications, longer hospital stay and higher mortality rate. The open cholecystectomy rate is higher in COVID compared with non -COVID patients. It is recommended to delay the surgical treatment in COVID patients, when it is possible, to decrease morbidity and mortality rates. COVID-19 infection and gangrenous cholecystistis are not absolute contraindications to perform laparoscopic cholecystectomy, in a case by case evaluation, in expert hands. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.
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